37. Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Raevyn

T here was blood everywhere. Mine and his. The handsome vampire king. His chest heaved, and blood covered his face. I'd broken his nose, twice but I was getting tired and he was starting to get the advantage.

The crowd was wild. The fight had been going on for longer than they'd expected and it was far more brutal than they'd hoped for. Blood dripped into my eye from a cut through my eyebrow. Most of my wounds had healed quickly, but even that was starting to slow down.

The vampire smiled widely and moved in a blur. Pain lanced across my midriff as talons sliced through my skin. Fuck, that hurt.

Another roar from the crowd.

"Fight back!" the voice from my dreams shouted. "You're more powerful than the vampire, dammit!"

"I know but I can't… I…" It was getting too difficult to speak.

"Raevyn. Just let go. Stop holding it back. You don't need to be afraid of it."

Magnus flew past me again, making me dizzy with where he was coming from. I couldn't focus on anything, couldn't get my senses to calm in the roar of the crowd.

"Close your eyes and take a deep breath. Centre yourself and breathe. "

"I can't."

"You can," he shouted. "Stop thinking and just do!"

It was easy for him to say. He wasn't being attacked by a vampire king.

"You're a fucking necromancer and he's somewhat dead," he hissed. And shit. He was right .

I took a breath and felt the world slow. The sound of the crowd dropped to a low strangled hum, and I felt Magnus move sluggishly. I could pinpoint where he was without even looking, it was like tiny vibrations along my left arm alerting me to the subtle movement through the airwaves.

I shot my hand out and my entire arm jerked with the impact, knocking me back a few paces.

Time sped up and the roar of the crowd was deafening, pulsing loudly in my ears.

I opened my eyes and found my hand tightly wrapped around the vampire's neck. Shock and surprise had his eyes blown wide and a powerful thrill ran through my veins. I blurted out a laugh as I felt my magic swirling behind my solar plexus. It was amazing, and vibrant and I could sense all the life threads of everyone in the room. It was a little overwhelming but so amazing and—

Magnus snarled and snapped his fangs dragging my attention back to the matter at hand. I pushed him backwards and he flew to the other side of the ring, slamming into the barrier. I looked at my hand in amazement. Where the hell had that come from?

"Your power is instinctual, Raevyn. It's always there," the voice from my dreams said.

There was another loud cheer from the crowd, and I caught my guys looking at me with fascination, lust and a hint of pride. I'd never felt so alive, so worthy .

I laughed again, my body humming with power. It was euphoric, exciting and exhilarating. I walked towards Magnus and listened to the thud of his heart.

"Yield," I shouted.

He got to his feet, dusting the splinters of the barrier off him. "Never."

I willed his heart to slow, revelling in the way his face paled, and his eyes bulged a little. "Are you sure?"

His hand clutched at his chest as I squeezed the life out of his heart. The sound of the crowd intensified as he fell to his knees.

My wings snapped out behind me as I pushed more power through my connection with Magnus. I could feel his heart spasming, struggling against my hold. "Yield!"

"Cut his fucking head off!"

"Kill him!"

"Make him pay!"

The crowd were fuelled by bloodlust, desperate for me to kill him, but this wasn't a fight to the death. I had no idea why Magnus wanted to fight here, only that I merely had to survive. Maybe the guy just wanted to prove that he could fight here.

I caught sight of Roux in the crowd, her red hair making her stand out in the sea of screaming spectators. Her face was pinched, her lips pursed, and a wave of guilt hit me. She might call him ‘King Douche' but there were some serious emotions playing across her face. I let him go, catching him before he fell to the floor. I pulled my wings up and around us, shielding us from view.

"Why?" I whispered, pulling back to look in his bright red eyes.

"Because it is expected of me."

There was something in his eyes that made me think of a trapped bird and it reminded me of me a little. "I will yield."

"No," he said with a shake of his head. "Either win, or…"

"Lose properly," I finished for him. I cast a glance at Ares through a gap in the feathers of my wings. He eyed me warily, stroking his pursed lips. The idea that this was a test popped into my mind and I knew I was right. Ares was trying to accomplish something here, but I wasn't sure what. It didn't matter though. I was going to do what I thought was right.

"Okay," I said shakily. "Then win."

Gratitude bled from his eyes and a small smile curled his lips. "If you ever need a favour—"

"Pfft, a favour got me into this mess."

He chuckled. "Well, if you ever need my help, the offer is there."

I gave him a single nod and put on my big girl pants. "What do you need me to do?"

I sat back in Ares' personal suite after the fight being coddled by the guys. Ares hadn't said anything, and he was still watching me intently.

"Guys, I'm fine," I said for the hundredth time. I could feel my magic tingling through my veins as it healed all my injuries. I'd had to make Magnus' win look believable, so I'd let him slam me into the ground a little. I think I broke a few ribs and feeling them knit themselves back together was weird.

To be fair to Magnus, he had offered to heal me afterwards. I still didn't have a clue what he was doing here in Infernium when his territory was topside, but it wasn't my place to ask. Handy to have a favour from him in my back pocket though.

"I totally thought you'd win," Nox said with a pout.

"She should have," Ares said. "But she was noble."

I shrugged a shoulder. "Maybe, or maybe he caught me by surprise."

There was a moment's silence and then Ares broke into laughter. It was loud and deep and rich, like it came from his very soul.

I looked around at five stunned faces. Guess the God didn't laugh all that often.

"I like you, little god, and I will grant you the request you need."

"Little god?" I asked.

"Mm-hmm. The power you wield comes from Olympus. You are more than just a witch or a necromancer. You're also a god."

"A God?" I asked, struggling to get my brain into gear. We'd known it was possible but I was hoping there was also a chance that I only had the power and was a lesser deity. I'd prefer that. the thought of being anything ‘god-like' was more than terrifying.

"Yes," Ares replied. "Well, more like a Demi-God. Your mother was definitely a witch. That power you showed in the arena was more than witchcraft, and I know that time manipulation is rare."

"That's what we thought," Korbin mused. "And why we wanted to visit the Isles."

"Makes sense," Ares said before walking over to his desk. He opened a drawer and pulled out a single sheet of paper. With a flourish he signed it and then presented it to me with a bow. "Your ticket."

"What about the ceremony and the magic and all the—" the penny dropped. "You asshole!"

Ares laughed again. "Sorry, gorgeous, it was too difficult to resist winding you up."

Another realisation hit me. "So you didn't even need me to fight?"

"Nope, but I wanted to see what you could do, and I could sense the barriers you'd set yourself in your mind. I just tested a theory."

Why was it that I both wanted to punch and hug the guy in one go. On one hand he'd manipulated me into doing what he wanted, and on the other, he'd helped me overcome my own mental wall.

"Thank you," I said offering my hand.

"You're welcome," he replied, engulfing my hand with his much larger one. "And besides, if you are Hades' sister, that makes you family."

Oh, fuck. It did. Hades was uncle to Ares so that would make me – gulp – his aunt. Ares chuckled as he followed the thoughts that were no doubt playing across my face. But it wasn't all bad. I'd gone from having a family that despised me to finding a family that, whilst it was a little unconventional, was much more than I could ever have wished for.